Corey Flintoff

Doby PhotographyNPR

Corey Flintoff is NPR's international correspondent based in Moscow. His journalism career has taken him to more than 50 countries, most recently to cover the civil war in Libya, the revolution in Egypt and the war in Afghanistan.

After joining NPR in 1990, Flintoff worked for many years as a newscaster during All Things Considered. In 2005, he became part of the NPR team covering the Iraq War, where he embedded with U.S. military units fighting insurgents and hunting roadside bombs.

Flintoff's reporting from Iraq includes stories on sectarian killings, government corruption, the Christian refugee crisis and the destruction of Iraq's southern marshes. In 2010, he traveled to Haiti to report on the massive earthquake its aftermath. Two years before, he reported on his stint on a French warship chasing pirates off the coast of Somalia.

One of Flintoff's favorite side jobs at NPR is standing in for Carl Kasell during those rare times when the venerable scorekeeper takes a break from Wait, Wait...Don't Tell Me!

Before NPR, Flintoff served as the executive producer and host of Alaska News Nightly, a daily news magazine produced by the Alaska Public Radio Network in Anchorage. His coverage of the 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill was recognized with the 1989 Corporation for Public Broadcasting Award.

In 1977, Flintoff got his start in public radio working at at KYUK-AM/TV, in Bethel, Alaska. KYUK is a bilingual English-Yup'ik Eskimo station and Flintoff learned just enough Yup'ik to announce the station identification. He wrote and produced a number of television documentaries about Alaskan life, including "They Never Asked Our Fathers" and "Eyes of the Spirit," which have aired on PBS and are now in the collection of the Smithsonian Institution.

He tried his hand at commercial herring fishing, dog-mushing, fiction writing and other pursuits, but failed to break out of the radio business.

Flintoff has a bachelor's degree from the University of California at Berkeley and a master's degree from the University of Chicago, both in English literature. In 2011, he was awarded an honorary doctorate degree from Drexel University.

5:03pm

Parallels

Ukrainian coal miners search the crash site of the Malaysia Airlines plane near the eastern village of Rozsypne. The area is under the control of pro-Russian separatists who are fighting the Ukrainian government.

Dmitry LovetskyAP

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4:00

The crash site of the Malaysia Airlines flight in eastern Ukraine holds many important clues about what happened to the plane. But that site is under the control of pro-Russian separatists who are suspected of involvement in shooting the plane down.

The rebel fighters say they are giving access to investigators, including those from the Ukrainian government, though one Ukrainian official who visited the scene Friday said he was not given full access.

Here are some of the key questions on the investigation into Flight MH17:

Europe

Russia's recent involvement in Ukrainian political turmoil touched a raw nerve in the Baltic countries of Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia. All three are now members of the EU and NATO, but they have painful memories of the Soviet occupation. Leaders of the Baltic states are asking for a bigger NATO presence in their countries, a move Russia angrily opposes.

Europe

The Ukrainian military ramped up air and artillery strikes against pro-Russian separatists today. The offensive in Ukraine's eastern provinces resumed after President Petro Poroshenko declared he would not renew a 10-day ceasefire. Russian President Vladimir Putin said Moscow would protect the interests of ethnic Russians in other countries but he didn't offer a specific support to the rebels in Ukraine. Here's NPR's Corey Flintoff.

And I'm Robert Siegel. Ukraine's new president says he will order a unilateral cease-fire in the East of his country. That's where government troops have been fighting pro-Russian separatists. The announcement today came after Petro Poroshenko discussed the crisis with Russian President Vladimir Putin. NPR's Corey Flintoff has this update from the eastern Ukrainian city of Donetsk.

Europe

Russia says it has cut natural gas supplies to Ukraine after Kiev missed a deadline to pay part of its huge outstanding energy debt. The Russians say that in the future the state-run company Gazprom will only supply gas to Ukraine in return for pre-payment.

Europe

U.S. relations with Russia are at their lowest point since the Cold War thanks to the crisis in Ukraine. Russian defense officials are talking about a new doctrine of subversive warfare between major world powers. They accuse the West of using popular uprisings to topple unfriendly governments. And some analysts say Moscow itself is employing that strategy in eastern Ukraine. More from NPR's Corey Flintoff.

2:42pm

Parallels

Crimea's new prime minister, Sergei Aksyonov (right), and the speaker of the legislature, Vladimir Konstantinov, attend a rally at Red Square in Moscow on March 18, the day Russia annexed the territory. Russia is pumping billions into Crimea after taking it from Ukraine. However, corruption has been a major problem in Crimea.

Pavel GolovkinAP

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4:01

Less than three months after Russia annexed Crimea, Moscow is committing billions of dollars in aid and tax breaks to make the Black Sea peninsula a showcase of development.

But there's at least one major problem: The region has a deeply ingrained reputation for corruption and organized crime, a reputation that already taints some of the region's newest leaders.

After Russian troops seized control of the Crimean parliament in February, one of the first leaders to emerge was a 41-year-old businessman and politician named Sergei Aksyonov.

Europe

This is WEEKEND EDITION from NPR News. I'm Scott Simon. Teams of international observers are arriving in Ukraine ahead of tomorrow's presidential election. But in the eastern region of the country, where pro-Moscow militia are vowing to disrupt the vote, there may not be much for them to observe. Separatists say they won't allow the election to proceed in the regions that they have declared to be independent states. NPR's Corey Flintoff reports from Donetsk.

Europe

There are increasing signs of friction between pro-Moscow separatists and local residents in eastern Ukraine, as some local people demand an end to the violence and lawlessness in the region. Meanwhile, one of Ukraine's richest men has repeated his call for a return to stability, calling on workers to show their support for a unified country.

4:16pm

Europe

Separatists occupy the administration building in the eastern Ukrainian city of Donetsk. Pro-Ukraine bloggers and activists say they've had to leave eastern cities because of threats and surveillance by separatists.

Fabio BucciarelliAFP/Getty Images

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3:20

As Ukraine prepares for presidential elections on Sunday, a social media struggle is underway in the country's eastern provinces.

That's where pro-Russian separatists have seized government buildings in many towns and declared independence after a much-disputed referendum. The separatists have vowed to block the vote in at least two key regions, Donetsk and Luhansk.

Europe

Barricades in the eastern Ukrainian town of Mariupol have been dismantled, following a deal between separatist leaders, police and steelworkers from the city's biggest steel mill. The deal came after steel mill owner, billionaire Rinat Akhmetov, issued a statement saying the region's economic future depended on staying united with Ukraine.

6:30pm

Parallels

A woman casts her ballot at a polling station on May 11 in Hartsizk, Ukraine. Pro-Russian separatists are claiming independence after the referendum in cities across eastern Ukraine.

Brendan HoffmanGetty Images

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3:53

In eastern Ukraine, pro-Russian separatists are claiming independence based on a victory in a hastily organized referendum. Now, they're resisting a nationwide presidential election that's scheduled for May 25.

With Russian troops still massed near the border, Ukrainian and international mediators are trying to find a solution for the crisis.

There are some very different visions of the future for the volatile region.